"Meet Dave"

Prior to seeing "Meet Dave," a handful of critic friends of mine had told me that it was decidedly not good but better than the abysmal trailers indicated. While I see what they mean -- there are brief flashes of almost-funny here -- this latest in a long line of shitty Eddie Murphy vehicles is still nowhere near watchable. Casting Murphy in the dual role of a human spaceship (the movie originally had the much better title "Starship Dave") and the captain of a group of miniature aliens inhabiting him, the movie isn't torturous to sit through but it's altogether bland and feels like a second-rate sitcom that happened to net Eddie Murphy for its star. The movie attempts to have some moments dealing with how exposure to our society might have on these aliens, but instead we get the lesson that 30 seconds watching the revival of "A Chorus Line" will result in you turning into a full-blown queen with a lisp and a keen eye for hair and fashion. Ed Helms get some minor smirk-worthy bits as the captain's second in command, but he's the closest thing here to a bright spot. While this is nowhere near as bad as "Norbit,"something as truly awful as that monstrosity is easier to sit through than something like this, which is barely even trying and never rises above (or below) a vaguely unmemorable hum.